The New York City week was a complete whirlwind, jam-packed with some of the best organizations in the photojournalism field. With every appointment, a photo editor of director of photography greeted us and they each graciously gave over an hour of their time to us. I can’t imagine another scenario where we would spend an entire week as a class visiting these places and people; it’s something I have been able to experience by being connected to RIT and its great photojournalism community. I am very proud to be a part of this community and am excited to contribute in any way possible.

The first Monday that we were back in class, Professor Snyder asked us to list the characteristics that make up a successful photographer according to what we heard from numerous speakers in NYC. Communication, motivation, persistence, organization, resourcefulness, and self-starting were among the characteristics listed and we noticed a common theme; none of these traits relied on talent and each and every one of us has the ability to be successful in this profession.

It’s almost impossible to not be inspired by who we saw that week. Every single person we met was passionate in regards to their job and their excitement easily transfers over. And just to think, each and every one of them was in the same position as I am now. That’s very exciting.